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Sunday, September 27, 2009

While sitting in class this last Friday, Hubs was called out of the room by the Front Desk Receptionist. Not an unusual request & we had a Guest Teacher in for the day so it was no biggee for him to step out for a bit. When he returned I asked what the problem was & he said just something little he had to take care of. Not a problem.

Toward the end of the class time I was writing something down in my notes from the teacher about how we are each strong enough to handle anything thrown at us & if we believe we can conquer something then we will. Hubs pointed to my notes & whispered to me, "Remember this after class ok? You can handle what coming up after class ok?"

What?? I told him that he was scaring me & he better tell me what was going on! He saw that my mind had gone to some really bad possibilities....wouldn't yours? So he told me that it wasn't bad, but I may not like it & that it was a surprise from a former student. That helped a bit , but yikes! What in the world was waiting for me downstairs after class? I walked out of the room which is at the top of a flight of stairs that go down into the Reception area of the church offices. ALL THE STAFF are gathered at the top of the stairs, staring at me & grinning as I went past them & descended the stairs. I grabbed Hubs arm & said "Do not leave me, stay close ok?"

At the bottom I see a stranger with a bunch of big black speakers stacked around him & a microphone in his hand, he asks if I am Brenda Susan. I say yes & he asks if I like Frank Sinatra & again I nod & say yes. So then he says that he has been sent to sing me some Sinatra songs & asks which one is my favorite. My answer to this poor guy was not the most gracious at all!

"You pick one, just do it!" I know, awful, awful! But I was just so caught off guard, it's not my birthday or anything & Hub's warnings to me just made it worse instead of better! (Yes, I am blaming him for my rudeness to this poor working guy!) He says, "Just get it over with?" And I nod "yes please." (I am so sorry now & wish I had enjoyed it more.)

By now the entire school has been dismissed & the steps behind me are clogged with sitting, laughing students! Hubs is holding me & I begin to enjoy the great song & great voice of this Frank Sinatra singer. He sang, "I've Got The World on A String" & it was beautiful!

I really do feel sorry for the guy because apparently when Hubs was called out of class it was to talk to this guy & he gave the singer the third degree because he wanted to protect me from a stripper kind of thing, or whatever. Poor, poor guy, just trying to make a living!

When he was done & the applause was over I talked to him while he packed up his stuff. He could only tell me that a former student who loved me very much had hired him to come sing some Sinatra to me. That's all he could say. I have no clue who did this, but I have some suspicions & I am checking up on them, but have a feeling I will never know who "blessed" me with this little surprise!

Thursday, September 24, 2009

One of my favoritest blog friends has asked that I add her to my Facebook Friends. But, dear Lisa, as much as I love you & your blog, (You should check her out, she is a thinker who also has humor. Not an easy mix!) I have made an intentional decision to keep my Blog world separate from my Facebook world. Mainly because my FB world is also my real world, that includes all my relatives, kids, friends, co-workers & students current & past.

I am not at all ashamed of what I write here, but I really am protective of my freedom to write anything. Some things you see on here are also posted in the "Notes" section of my FB page but not everything. For instance I did not post these two recent writings on Facebook. They would have completely embarrassed my son & his new girlfriend. (BTW, Writer Son bought a ticket to his lady-love's state today! He will be there for a month & then decide from there what the next step is!! Wow, this is big for my "stay where it's safe" guy!)

So, the two worlds are kept secret from one another. If a blog friend commented me on FB then it could be traced back here. This kinda sounds like I am pretty paranoid, but it's more about freedom than suspicion or secrecy. Maybe some day I will be free enough to vent openly on FB, but for now it is not the right place for letting my self ramble like I seem to be doing here at this moment! Ha! Time to say bye-bye!

Wednesday, September 23, 2009

First of all, please know that I am not really complaining about facebook, not at all! I love it! But something kind of weird happened today & it has disturbed & amused me. As I told you in my last post, Writer Son has discovered that he loves his best friend & since they have been best friends for 3 or 4 years, everyone around here is rejoicing & saying "Well, duh!".

Hubs & I have been totally enjoying this development because we had her picked out as the perfect one for him for quite a long time. But they had to come to that for themselves & the last few days have been full of great chats with my eldest son & huge grins shared between Hubs & I. Now, here is where Facebook comes in & it gets weird.........

I teared up when they both changed their "Relationship Status's" on their Facebook pages! If you are unfamiliar, it changes from "Single" to "John Doe is in a relationship with Jane Lane". It was as if this whole new relationship was not real until it appeared on Facebook!! How messed up is that? It felt like that declaration for all the world to see was the proof that this is love!!

Facebook is also the reason I am getting reconnected with my cousins after 35 years. We are having a blast comparing old pictures & bringing up funny memories of our childhood summers together. It's been truly wonderful! This would not have happened without FB & I am thankful for this connection place.

But still, the idea that changing their relationship status on Facebook is the modern equivalent of declaring your love from the mountain tops is so funny to me! But I think it is true. That is a pretty big deal. Everyone you know; grandparents, friends, co-workers, enemies...everyone gets the news at the same moment. And then come the responses from all these people in your life. Writer Son got tons of comments (most pg rated) of cheers & thumbs up & "it's about time"! (My restraint will now be tested. As Mom, I don't want to get in there too much & embarrass him you know?)

Friday, September 18, 2009

OK, this is one of those times that I am extremely happy that this blog is a secret between you all & me! My friends & family do not have the address & if some friends have found it on their own I have asked that they not tell me. (They all know I have the blog but I don't give out the address.) I like the FREEDOM to write without worrying about feelings & whatever.ANYWAY!.......See that picture of the happy lady? Multiply that expression about a million times & you'll get me & my face! I still want to protect my loved one's privacy so I'll be sorta careful here but oh man, am I happy about this development! Writer Son has finally realized that he is in love with his best friend! Ahem, yes, she is a she! They have been super close for the last 4 years & have adamantly defended their friendship from others who kept saying it really looked like a deeper relationship. Nope, nope it is just a friendship they have been singing for a long time. They know each other so well & have seen one another through fun stuff & really hard stuff, ugly stuff & beautiful stuff. Two nights ago he came over & sitting on our couch told us that they have moved to a different relationship. Hubs & I have long wanted them to see what we see, but could not say anything, so as he is talking to us, my grin is getting bigger & bigger & it is hard to contain my joy & happiness! I glance at Hubs & he is staring at the floor, obviously (to me) also working hard to hold in his enthusiasm so we don't overwhelm the poor boy! Ha! Hubs & I have talked to each other about our love for this little amazing girl & how perfect she is for Writer Son. At last I hug the boy & tell him how happy we are to see him so happy. After he left the house Hubs & I just looked at each other a practically did that girly scream you see on TV when women get excited!***So, if you are a friend of mine in real life; don't you dare tell my guy that I wrote about him on the internet ok? Big trouble for me. Thanx!***

Saturday, September 12, 2009

On the long drive home from our visit to our mom's homes in WA & OR I took a little nap & fantasized about writing an article on the 55er Club. As mentioned here, it was an important part of my childhood which I shared with my cousins. In my not-quite-asleep mode I realized that an article would require some quotes from the other cousins involved in our joint childhood experiences. This is something I dreaded a bit. I am not really close to any of them at this point in our lives. There are 4 of the original five 55er's still alive & I Facebook with one of them & only have seen the other two at weddings & funerals over the years. Not what you could call a real relationship anymore!

A few days after getting home I wrote a comment on my cousin's Facebook page asking what her favorite 55er Club memory was. She answered immediately & enthusiastically & suggested we have a party to celebrate 2010 as the year all of us turn 55! This was exactly what I was hoping would not happen! I love a party. I do! But I love a party with PEOPLE I KNOW!

I tried to get out of the idea as gently as I could, then finally told her that since the other cousins were basically strangers; a party did not sound fun to me. Guess what happened! The VERY NEXT DAY cousin number 3 sends me a FRIEND REQUEST on Facebook! Sneaky cousins!! So at this point the 3 of us are really having a great time sharing photos from our 55er Club camp out days & I have to say it has been great & a little weird.

It is an interesting experience to go back in time along with others who lived the same things but may see it from a different perspective. They each have different snapshots of our times on the "island" every summers end, both literally & figuratively. We are enjoying exchanging photos & memories. As I hear another version of my experiences it brings back more memories than I knew I knew. I really do not know where this will all lead.

Thursday, September 10, 2009

Once upon a time, fifty-five years ago next year to be exact, five cousins were born in the same year. When the great & momentous occasion of their 5th birthday & going to Kindergarten arrived, the mommies & daddies decided to celebrate with a week end camp out at the end of the summer just before school would begin. The camp out became an enduring family tradition up until the 55er club reach into their teen years & the families got too busy with other things.

The other day I was pondering the arrival of my 55th birthday in 2010 & realized that this is again a very momentous occasion! So I contacted the one cousin I am in contact with on FB & one thing led to another & now there are 3 of us chatting away on FB about getting together next year to celebrate our joint wonderfulness! We are trying to get cousin number 4 to get with it & come to the dark side of Facebook, he is not doing well physically so other things may be much more important for him at this time. Cousin number 5 sadly did not survive our 12 year due to an awful accident that took her short life.

Who knows where this all will lead. My cousins & I are very thankful for our fun childhood & shared stories of those camp outs each year. We are also very different people now & the emotion of getting to know one another all over again has been really interesting & sometimes just too much for me. I am not the quiet, reserved, easy-to-boss-around cuz anymore & I am needing to very intentionally assert myself as this new free person to my cousins even just through chats on FB. It's crazy! The old feelings of being mowed over by stronger personalities is so tempting to just go along with. But, that will not happen now, because I am different.

Let's see where this will go in the coming weeks. I am seriously thinking about writing about our camp outs & this process for a magazine article. Who knows, it could be my big breakthrough into freelance writing.

Sunday, September 6, 2009

Thursday, September 3, 2009

On our long ten hour drive home from Washington I had a chance to just think. How often does that happen for such an extended time? Someone mentioned in a recent blog post that empty times of relaxation bring out our creative side & this is what happens to me.

After a few hours of keeping Hubs awake on the road by reading him Facebook statuses, which worked really well by the way. Especially when my status said "Please send out some great stuff so I can read them to Hubs to keep him awake!" They came through for me!

Anyway, after a lunch stop & caffeine he told me to go ahead & sleep as we drove the last few hours home. As I rested, my mind came up with a wonderful magazine article idea & I followed that thinking long enough to figure out how to do the research & what photos I would want with it & even a lot of the text was swirling around in my sleepy head!

Of course there is always the danger that ideas that come during sleepy times may be crazy once the eyes are open & real life hits with a bang. But this idea is still a good one & I COULD do it! I am in my mid fifties & still have at least 25 or so years to go right? That is enough time for lots of amazing magazine articles....theoretically, at least.

BUT

will I be able to discipline myself & my time enough to accomplish this fun goal? Sure would love to, sure would feel proud to see my stuff in a real live magazine or an online e-zine. What a silly time to be thinking this way! Our school begins on the 15th of September & it consumes me....but maybe it shouldn't. Maybe I need to do this for me, just to know I can.

I don't know.

For now I guess I will keep tapping away on my own blogwhere I am free to send out garbage or beauty

Tuesday, September 1, 2009

Just spent a great weekend at my folks amazing 1 1/2 acres of woods in WA. They have literally carved out just enough room for a house & mom's garden!

Got a pic of Dad explaining the compost heap to me.

My mom is a Master Gardener & has designed "rooms" of greenery that are so peaceful & calming. Great place to relax & refresh before our busy school year begins.The funny face she is making under the umbrella is while she is saying, "She'll probably get a pic of me in a stupid pose...like this!" Ha!

We slept in a room of ancestors & books.

My mom is a serious bibliophile...see the book room?

Hubs does not always "get" my mom's creative gardening decorating! I love the pic of him "enjoying" the garden chandelier!

The shot with the red railing is their "backyard"! Gorgeous! We came home very rested....even after a 10 hour drive! Now we are ready for anything.

WELCOME!

Because my name is Brenda Susan I considered calling my blog "A Bunch of B.S.!" but could not bring myself to do it. Having those initials in elementary school was not fun, especially since in my innocence I had no clue what the joke was for some time! Anyway, welcome to my observations on life. Somewhat witty, heartwarming & always as real as I know how to be.